On Your Mark
by lulunicorn
Summary: Rei and Nagisa stay for extra swim practice after the rest of the club goes home. What will happen when Nagisa offers a challenge?


It was a regular Friday after school at Iwatobi High. The swim club was doing laps, Rei still struggling to stay afloat. He was unusually determined today, simply refusing to get out of the pool.

Kou, Haru, and Makoto had all gone home over an hour ago. Nagisa had stayed behind to make sure Rei wouldn't drown without his floaties or kickboard.

Nagisa sat on the edge of the pool, dangling his feet into the clear water, kicking splashes at Rei every time he slowly paddled by. The sun was beginning to go down and Rei was still persistently swimming laps.

"Rei-chan! If you keep swimming at this hour you'll catch a cold!" Nagisa called.

Rei resurfaced and gasped for air, flustered and out of breath.

"Tell you what Rei-chan," Nagisa hopped down into the chest-deep water, "We need to leave soon and you've been working extra hard! If you swim this lap well enough, and I'll give you a kiss!"

Rei's face immediately glowed red and he desperately tried to cover his cheeks with his hand. "W-what makes you think I want a kiss?" He managed to spit out.

"It will be fun! Besides, you deserve a reward!" Nagisa flashed and innocent smile. Rei sighed and sank down into the water.

Nagisa formed a fake pistol with his hands and raised it into the sky. "On your mark... Get set...BANG!"

Rei pushed off the pool wall with lightning speed as Nagisa watched in awe at his sudden improvement. Rei made it to the end of the pool at record speed. Nagisa clapped and cheered him on the whole time.

"That was amazing Rei-chan! You must be as good as fast as Haru by now!" Nagisa gushed. He swam over to the pools edge where Rei was catching his breath. Rei blushed violently and began to stutter.

"I can't be that good. Don't lie to me, Nagisa."

"I'm not lying!" Nagisa beamed up at him. "That was fantastic! You've definitely proved yourself!" His smile turned into a tiny smirk.

Rei turned even darker red as Nagisa rocked up onto his tiptoes, trying to bridge the height gap between the two of them. Nagisa's eyes bagan to glide shut as he leaned up closer to Rei's mouth.

Before he could give it a second thought, Rei bent down and pressed his lips to Nagisa's. They were damp, and tasted of chlorine. But they were sweet and soft all the same.

Nagisa could feel the heat radiating off Rei's cheeks. He smiled a little against Rei's mouth before softly pressing back and returning the kiss. He wrapped his small arms around Rei's neck and pulled the taller boy closer to his chest.

Rei hoisted him up to let him sit on the pools edge. They were essentially on the same level now. With one final peck on Rei's lips, Nagisa trailed kisses up Rei's jaw and up to his ear. Rei squeaked and tried to convince himself that Nagisa didn't notice. Nagisa then gently bit his ear, before leaning in even further and pushing him backwards into the water.

Before Rei could resurface, Nagisa laughed hysterically and dove back down into the water. He swam as fast as he could to the opposite end of the pool.

Rei came up confused and coughing before spotting Nagisa at the other end. He was giggling as usual and waving at Rei. "If you want more, you need to catch me first!" Nagisa shouted. Then he swiftly disappeared under the surface of the dark water.

"Get back here! You owe me for this!" Rei yelled. He pulled his goggles back on and dove under. The water was grey in the evening light, but he could still distinguish Nagisa's swimming form. He finally had the upper hand-Nagisa didn't have on goggles, and was swimming blindly.

Rei swam as quickly and as silently as he could to where Nagisa was now standing. Nagisa was squinting, surveying the dusky surface in the faint light. Suddenly, Rei burst up from the water directly in front of Nagisa. Rei surged forward, wrapping his arms around Nagisa's waist and lifting him up into the air as he stood up.

Nagisa was finally level with Rei, who glared at him with an impatient look plastered to his face. Nagisa smiled and pressed another soft kiss to his lips. "One more round?" Nagisa asked quietly.

Rei lowered the blonde boy back into the water, silently accepting the offer. Nagisa sped off in a different direction as he trailed him as fast as he could manage.

By the time Rei had won again, they were both wheezing, with numb toes and blue lips from swimming so hard in the cold, night water.

Both of them came down with a mild cold. Much to Nagisa's delight, he spent the weekend with Rei at his house. They cuddled under layers of electric blankets and napped, squeezing in an occasional movie when they were awake enough. Nagisa even managed to sneak into one of Rei's sweatshirts to keep himself toasty.

Rei and Nagisa were both healthy enough to return to school on Monday. They went back to swimming practice as usual. Kou and Haruka were reviewing the training regimen together, while Nagisa and Makoto were doing stretches. Rei was busy looking for his goggles. He could overhear Makoto and Nagisa chatting as they warmed up.

"Where were you this weekend, Nagisa?" Makoto asked. "I thought we had plans to study together but you weren't home."

"I was at Rei-chan's house. We both had colds so we rested together!"

"How long did you two stay in the pool?!" Makoto cried.

"I can explain!" Nagisa giggled

Rei froze in his tracks as Nagisa began to tell Makoto what had happened after school on Friday. He sat down and draped a towel over his head in embarassment, silently wishing for Nagisa to shut his mouth. Unfortunately for him, Nagisa finished the story without interruption. He heard Kou and Haru stop talking, and was almost positive they had heard the entire story as well. Rei scooted back against the fence, still hiding, wishing for everyone to forget he existed.

Makoto chuckled, "You just get whatever you want, don't you Nagisa?"

"Not exactly," Nagisa replied. Rei heard approaching footsteps before Nagisa ripped the towel off of Rei's head. He plopped down into his lap and pecked Rei's cheeck. "I had to work for this one."


End file.
